Clearly, this was an unusual meeting of Dáil representatives: delegates wore Ugg boots, the table was littered with empty Coke and Sprite bottles, and a discussion about the US election segued into an argument about the merits of Mac Oyster Girl lipgloss.
"Remember what I was saying about relevance," prompted the session's chair, Brian Gavin, and with barely a groan, the young nominees of Dublin's Comhairle na nÓg (youth council) got back to the topics at hand: education reform and suicide prevention.
The nominees, aged 12 to 17, were developing recommendations to be debated when they attend next week's Dáil na nÓg (youth parliament).
Darren Bates (17) from Ballyfermot had a radical suggestion to ensure that all Irish people would be able to learn their native tongue.
"Look at this Government document," he said, clutching a Dáil na nÓg paper. "It's all in English. Everyone would learn Irish if things like this were all in Irish, and if all the signs in Government buildings and around the city were in Irish. Not Irish and English, just Irish."
"Then there'd be an awful lot of lost people in Dublin," commented fellow delegate Laura Bowler (15) from Clontarf.
Each Comhairle na nÓg in the State elects a group of delegates to represent them at the Dáil na nÓg.
The 10 students at the Dublin City Council chambers yesterday were from diverse backgrounds but they all spoke with eloquence and passion.
Anna Hayes (13) from Ballsbridge said the youth parliament pushed her to take more than a passing interest in current affairs. "It encourages you to pay attention to what goes on around you," she said.
Jessica Kelch (15) from Ballyfermot said the parliament gave her a platform to speak about issues that affected her as a young person.
"Well, the health system is a joke, but that's no secret . . . one thing that really annoys me, that really bugs me down to the ground, is the whole thing of student fares. It's completely ridiculous. If you're going to see a '15' film, you have to pay adult prices, because they say you're an adult from 15."
She added: "And it'll be the same next year on the buses [ when she turns 16 and will have to pay adult fares]. If they don't want to give us the rights of an 18-year-old, like voting, you can't expect us to pay the prices of an adult."
All 200 delegates at the Dáil na nÓg, which has been under way for seven years and is organised through the Office of the Minister for Children, will meet in session at Croke Park on Friday, February 15th.